equine welfare

In Nicaragua, especially in low income households, horses are heavily relied upon for transportation, whether it be transporting people or raw materials. As a result, horses bear the brunt of much hard labor resulting in wounds, lacerations as well as poor health and malnutrition. To alleviate the hardships they face, World Vets has been providing free veterinary services for the working horse population in Nicaragua for many years.

Our equine welfare project is based in Granada and targets both carriage and cart horses as well as those owned by low income households who cannot afford veterinary care for their horses. Since its inception, we have expanded our reach and now operate mobile clinics in both urban and rural areas as well as other localities within the department of Granada.

The veterinary services that we facilitate at no cost include hoof and dental work, vaccinations, castrations, de-worming and wound treatments. Our main focus has been to improve the comfort and quality of life of working horses, and so we often distribute donated halters, leads and padding to horse owners as well.

If you have been looking for a way to help horses abroad, we have volunteer opportunities available as part of our equine welfare project in Nicaragua. Our next set of mobile outreach clinics are scheduled in December and volunteer positions are still available! Learn more

For many years World Vets has been operating an equine welfare project in Nicaragua to benefit horses in and around the city of Granada. Horses are an important livelihood source for many households as they are relied upon to help carry out daily chores and generate income. Due to difficult socio-economic constraints, these horses are often malnourished and affected by tropical diseases and injuries from their heavy workload.

On our most recent campaign, our team met Pithaya after they were asked to stop by a nearby home that had a sick horse. Upon arrival, they discovered four-year-old Pithaya who was severely malnourished, had several infected wounds, overgrown feet, and evidence of tick borne disease. Although he was in severe condition, the owners (two young girls and their grandmother) care for him greatly. However, caring for Pithaya has become extremely difficult for them as they have health issues of their own, and no current income source or means to earn money. What`s more, the parents of the children have left the home to seek employment elsewhere.

The World Vets team created an Indiegogo campaign to help pay for Pithaya’s extensive treatment & to provide aid to other Nicaraguan horses & families living in similar conditions. We’re thrilled to announce that we met our Indiegogo goal of raising $5k! We are so incredibly thankful to everyone who participated! We’d like to extend our thanks to all of our supporters. A special thank you to our dedicated campaign team members Dr. Steve Kruneniski, Dr. Dana Westerman, Elisa Harvey, Cynthia Spanhel, and Amanda Headman for increasing fundraising efforts by spreading the word.

Stay tuned for news and updates on Pithaya & the other horses of Nicaragua that your contributions are supporting! Didn’t get the chance to contribute? It’s not too late! Help a horse by clicking HERE.

List of Equine Hope Fund supporters:

Adam C.

Anita Vargas

Beverly Voss

Amanda McNabb

Cary Granger

Cassandra Russell

Catherine Cheatham Krueger

Cathi Tower

Cody Wolff

Cynthia Spanhel

Dana Westerman

Deneen Munson

Edna Seymour

Elisabeth Walter

Elisa Harvey

Hanna Utterheim

Holly Hockett

Judy Bridges

Kara Mary

Kristy Moding

Kristina Elyse

Laura Oltman

Linda Strom

Lisa Marie Tretheway

Lynn Prather

Mariah Coakley

Natalia Jacovkis

Pauline Perry

Petrice Greer Eisele

Scot Nester

Sherrie Boston

Sherry Dahlquist

Steve S.

** If you made a contribution to this campaign & would like your name added to the list, please contact us so we may recognized your gift.

World Vets had a veterinary team in Nicaragua this past week. Together with local veterinarians and volunteers, they provided a week long equine welfare clinic. Working in a variety of locations, they reached both rural and urban horse populations, providing much needed veterinary services and care.

World Vets has been operating an equine welfare project, which provides free veterinary services to horses, in the Granada area for many years. We are thankful for the continual support of Fondation Brigitte Bardot of this ongoing endeavor.

World Vets recently deployed a volunteer veterinary team to Granada, Nicaragua as part of our equine welfare project in the area. Our team, along with Nicaraguan veterinarians and students, held a free equine welfare clinic in and around the city which benefited 300 horses.

With the support of Fondation Brigitte Bardot, World Vets has been providing free equine health clinics in Granada, Nicaragua for several years. The project first began by treating the carriage horses, that serve as taxis in the city, and has expanded to include cart horses as well. Cart horses are not only used as a mode of transportation but they also haul raw materials and goods. As a result of their labor intensive days, routine veterinary care is required for both to ensure their well being. With World Vets ongoing care of the horses in and around Granada there is now a noticeable difference in their condition for the better.

We have an upcoming volunteer opportunity on this project. We will be sending a team to Granada for our equine welfare project in May 2013. Read more about this opportunity here